


Lady in the Water

by nagi_schwarz



Series: Good Hunting [22]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010), Stargate Atlantis
Genre: F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-24
Updated: 2017-10-24
Packaged: 2019-01-22 06:56:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,221
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12475916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nagi_schwarz/pseuds/nagi_schwarz
Summary: Written for the 2017 Shoobie Monster Fest.John and Rodney are on leave in Hawaii and John gets surfing lessons from an old pro.





	Lady in the Water

With all the insanity of John’s new posting, sometimes he forgot that he was still, well, at a posting. Like every other posting he’d had before, which included things like pay and, more importantly, leave. Because Project Orion belonged first and foremost to the Air Force, the civilian members of the team got pay and leave pretty much on the same scale as the commissioned members of the team. So Rodney and John had leave at the same time.

Everything after Christmas had been been a downright whirlwind, San Francisco to England to Afghanistan to Virginia and a bunch of places in between for smaller, regular hunts. Evan and Miko got to visit their families while they were in Frisco. John had a brief, uncomfortable lunch with his father and the man’s new wife (who was not, not, _not_ John’s stepmother) and then a nicer, more relaxing dinner with Dave and Kathy and the girls (and Rodney along as his guest).

Given that John had first met Rodney and members of Project Orion in Afghanistan, he supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised that hunting involved international travel, except it hadn’t, not at all before Christmas, and Sam and Dean said they’d never done it growing up as road hunters. So much time on the road was exhausting. So much time in the air was worse. John had forgotten how much worse it could be.

But now they had a chance for leave, and they were all getting leave at the same time. Sam and Dean were headed to Kansas to meet up some Campbell cousins. Dean had dangerous plans to take Evan with him, and then halfway through they would head out to San Francisco to stay with Evan’s family while Sam stayed with the cousins. Vala and Miko were also headed to Kansas, but instead to drop in on Ma and Pa Mitchell, say hello, before both of them also headed to San Francisco to spend time with Miko’s family.

Rodney and John were going to Toronto so spend a couple of weeks with Rodney’s niece and her grandparents.

And then they were going to Hawaii.

John sprang for first class tickets so Rodney wouldn’t spend the first two days with awful back pain. John didn’t want to stay in a ridiculously high-priced resort and get stuck trying to navigate through tourist traps to get to the places he wanted, so he booked a motel near a stretch of beach he knew had good surfing. For Rodney’s benefit, they had plans to go hiking and catch some of the views, a helicopter tour, a Pearl Harbor tour, and also fine restaurants.

Rodney had a stack of physics journals he wanted to catch up on, though, and he didn’t mind sitting on the sand under an umbrella while John surfed, so long as John occasionally brought him little umbrella drinks and helped re-up his sunblock.

What Rodney didn’t know or possibly didn’t quite appreciate was that sometimes the best time to surf was very early in the morning. So after their second day on Oahu, John slid out of bed while it was still dark, kissed Rodney _see you later,_ and scrambled into his wetsuit. He grabbed a towel, some flip flops, a bottle of water, a handful of power bars, his wallet, keys, and phone, and then off to the beach he went.

He knew he probably looked like some kind of nutcase, riding the bus is the pre-dawn darkness, surfboard beside him, but Rodney would need the rental car to join him later.

John wasn’t surprised that he wasn’t the only person heading out to catch the waves that early, but the beach wasn’t crowded, and he was assured that most of the people out here were locals who had good surfing etiquette, wouldn’t shark his waves and wouldn’t mess with his stuff. He laid out his towel, set his stuff down on it, and then out to the waves he went.

There was a certain serenity to sitting on his board and feeling the rise and fall of the waves, the ebb and flow. John was one of many surfers out on the water, bobbing on his board, just relaxing into it, waking himself up, waiting for the sun to rise. He didn’t chase every wave, but he did paddle out to pretty much the same spot every time. He hadn’t much enjoyed being stuck on an island with just his father and brother for company when he was younger, stuck there all summer if their father so willed it, but all of that had melted away when he was on the ocean.

John closed his eyes, felt his body move with the water, gentle, like when he rose and fell with Rodney’s breaths, or with his heartbeat.

All of it washed away - losing Lyle, losing his mother a second time, Nancy, losing Lyle again. Being kidnapped and stabbed. Learning just how not-quite-human he was.

All that mattered was here, and now, the waves, the sea.

A huge swell started to build. John leaned forward, paddled to meet it, cutting through the water like a knife. He knew this rhythm, knew this sensation.

Only one other surfer from his section was trying to catch the wave, a young woman, dark-skinned, shoulder-length black hair, something East Asian to the cast of her eyes.

John felt the moment he caught the wave, and then he was up on his feet.

The rush was amazing as his board tipped over the crest of the wave. He angled so he was riding the wave itself, racing it as it curled above him, threatening to crash over him at any moment.

The woman was right there with him, her stance flawless, confident, the sheer thrill of the ride in every line of her body.

Then it was just John and the wave.

He sailed and he sped and he flew - and then the wave was done, and he was heading for the shore.

He lowered himself to his board, paddled back out to the same spot as before, a little away from everyone else. It was a good spot, and he liked what he’d been able to catch of the wave from there. The woman was already there, waiting for him. She nodded at him, brief acknowledgment of a wave well-ridden. John nodded back at her, smiled briefly.

Something about her was familiar.

After several waves it became apparent that the woman was a far superior surfer to John - and a lot of other people out there on the waves. Where he pretty much just rode along each wave, enjoying the speed and the serenity of it, she was aggressive, picking up speed, hopping crests, carving back and forth. John was a surfer. She was an artist.

Finally John needed a break. The sun had risen fully, and John was feeling his early start more than he’d like. He was almost thirty-five, and he’d done a lot of stupid things to himself. He rode a wave back into shore, hopped off his board, started up the beach. He shucked his leash, planted his board upright in the sand, and sprawled out on his towel.

He unzipped his wetsuit to his waist, wriggled out of it. He ate a power bar and drained his bottle of water in short order. After he’d caught his breath, he stood up, ambled toward the showers and water fountain to refill his bottle.

His surfing neighbor was there already filling her bottle.

“You’re a damn good surfer,” John said.

She smiled at him. “Thanks. You’re not so bad yourself.”

Something about her was naggingly familiar. John scratched the back of his neck. “Listen, I swear this isn’t a pick-up line, but have we met before? Because I swear I know your face.”

She was pretty, slender but strong. She turned to face him. “I don’t think I recognize you.”

“How old are you? I used to surf here when I was a teenager, but that was - well, longer ago than I like to admit,” John said. “Maybe we surfed together as kids?”

The woman gave him a once-over, noted his dog tags. “Have you ever been stationed here?”

“I wish, but no. It’s just - sorry. Not trying to be weird. Maybe you just have one of those faces.” He offered a hand. “I’m John.”

She shook it. She had a firm, confident handshake. “Kono.”

And then it clicked. “Not - Kono Kalakaua, the competition surfer?”

“Officer with the Five-0 Task Force these days, but yeah.” She smiled at him.

“Wow. It’s an honor.”

“Thank you.” She inclined her head, flattered. “So - are you on leave?”

John nodded. “Yeah. Two weeks here, then back to work.”

“What branch do you serve in?”

“Air Force.”

“My boss, Steve McGarrett, he’s a Navy SEAL.”

They walked back toward their towels together. Hers wasn’t far from his.

“I’m not nearly that badass,” John said. “Just a lowly chopper pilot. So - police officer now. That’s - different.”

“Knee injury,” Kono said.

John winced. “I’m sorry.”

“I can’t compete anymore, and law enforcement is kind of a family tradition. My cousin’s a cop, and his dad was a cop, so it made sense.” Kono smiled.

“Well, even with a knee injury you’re miles better than me.” John rolled his shoulders, did a quick self-inventory of how his body was feeling. He nodded, shrugged back into his wetsuit, zipped it up. “Let’s hit the waves?”

Kono bounced to her feet with an enthusiasm that John only ever saw in Vala and Miko these days. “Let’s!”

John rode the waves calmly at first, enjoying the sun and breeze and speed. Sometimes he and Kono rode together, sometimes they took turns, one going first, the other paddling along the wave before popping onto it was well.

Finally, after a nice long run on a wave, Kono paddled out to where John was waiting.

“You wanna learn how to carve a little more?” she asked.

John was hesitant at first, because he wasn’t getting any younger. Then he remembered that he’d learned how to take on a nest of vampires and demons and other things he’d previously imagined were impossible. He said, “Sure.”

It was like learning to surf all over again, him wiping out every time he tried to change edges on his board, change directions. By the time he managed to carve back and forth five times without wiping out, his thighs were killing him, because he had to dig a lot deeper to maintain control of the board, but Kono gave him a high five as they trotted up the sand to their towels, and John realized. He’d just gotten free surfing lessons from a champion competition surfer.

As they drew closer to their towels, John was confused, because Kono’s towel was where she’d left it, but John’s was nowhere to be seen. Someone had set up right where his towel was with another towel, a massive beach umbrella, a low chair, a stack of magazines, and -

Rodney. Had finally arrived.

“Everything all right, bruh?” Kono asked, sensing John’s hesitation, and he remembered that on top of being an amazing surfer, she was also a cop.

“Everything’s fine,” he said. “I set out early to catch the waves and my buddy slept in.” He felt like a cheater, telling a beautiful woman that Rodney was his _buddy,_ but he was still on active duty and she worked with a guy who was still in the reserves at the very least. “He must have finally caught up to me. I’m impressed he remembered what my towel looks like.”

John certainly hadn’t remembered what any of Rodney’s beach gear looked like.

A moment later, Rodney came ambling along the shore in board shorts, flip flops, and his faded _I’m With Genius_ t-shirt. He was wearing a fisherman’s cap and was pretty thoroughly covered in sunblock.

“Finally,” he said. “I thought you were going to drown out there a couple of times. You said you knew how to surf.”

“Surf, yes. Hotdog, not so much,” John said. He unzipped his wetsuit, shrugged off the upper half. “Kono here was kind enough to teach me. She has had a career in competition surfing, and that she was willing to give me lessons was very generous.”

Rodney raised his eyebrows, taking in Kono’s trim and slim form.

“It’s like you getting to play with a super-collider with - with Maria Goeppert-Mayer,” John said.

Rodney considered for a moment. “Fair enough. Are you going back out there, or -?”

“I don’t know about Kono, but it’s time for me to take a break.” John planted his board in the sand, then eased down onto the towel beside Rodney. “Maybe in a little bit I’ll be ready to head back out on the waves. You wanna try?”

Rodney glanced at the board. “No, thanks.”

“By the way,” John said, “Kono Kalakaua, this is Rodney McKay, one of my teammates. Rodney, this is Kono.”

“Teammates?” Kono asked.

“Civilian contractor,” Rodney said, shaking her hand briskly. “I have PhDs in physics and engineering.”

“Wow.” Kono smiled. “Pleased to meet you. I’m actually about done for the day myself, better head in to work. But you know what? I’m going surfing with my cousin tomorrow. My boyfriend’s got a boat, and we’re going to head further offshore to a place where the waves get really, really big. Would you like to come along?”

“Are you sure?” John said. “We wouldn’t want to crash your personal time with your family.”

“No, it’s totally fine. It’ll give you a chance to really carve.” Kono grinned at him. “Here, come meet us for lunch at Kamekona’s Shrimp Truck. See the island for real.” She handed him a business card.

“Thanks.” John glanced at Rodney. “We’ll talk it over,” he said. It sounded like a fantastic opportunity.

“As long as there’s room on the deck of the boat for me to continue my work, by all means, spend your vacation time engaging in death-defying stunts, as if you never do that on the job,” Rodney said without looking up from his journal.

“Are you sure?” John asked.

Rodney looked up at him, and his intense expression (the one he always wore when he was studying) softened. “Yes, I’m sure. This is your vacation as much as it is mine. When’s the next time you’ll have this chance?”

“Thanks,” John said quietly, and Rodney smiled at him, understated but brilliant in his warmth, and John remembered that Rodney was _his_ and here, on Oahu, where no one knew them, they could _be._

And then he remembered Kono, and he smoothed away his own smile, going for _all just bros here,_ but it was too late, she’d seen.

But she just smiled, calm, too calm over the backdrop of John’s pounding heart, and she said, “Great. See you at lunch!” Bundled up her towel and board and headed up the beach toward the showers.

“Are you okay?” Rodney asked. “Did you not want to go?” He’d seen John’s anxious expression and misread it.

What could John say? Stop looking at me like you love me? Because he and Rodney didn’t get to look at each other like that enough, and dammit, John _did_ love Rodney. Rarely did they have the chance to show it.

“No, I definitely want to go,” John said. “I appreciate you being willing to come along. I promise, I will go with you to do any especially scientific thing you want in the next two weeks, all right?”

“It’s fine,” Rodney said. “You looked happy out there. I’m glad we came.”

“Me too.” John slid a little closer to Rodney, not quite touching but close enough to feel his warmth. He didn’t dare take off his dog tags, because that was like a cheating husband taking off his wedding ring, but if no one knew who he was, what he did for a living, it wouldn’t matter if he leaned over and kissed Rodney right then and there, Rodney who looked golden and perfect in the morning sunlight.

John shared his power bars with Rodney, drank some water, fetched umbrella drinks for both of them from the little snack-and-drink stand that opened up next to the showers and drinking fountains, and he listened while Rodney read through journal articles and peppered his readings with blisteringly sarcastic criticism.

Once John was recovered from his beating on the waves, he grabbed his board and went out to try to carve some more. Rodney was even willing to shed his shirt and wade in the breakers - and damn, Sam’s endless nagging about improved fitness leading to better survival rates in the field had certainly paid off, because his chest and shoulders were spectacular.

After another hour out on the waves, John was pretty competent at simple carving, and he was tired and ready to head back to the motel.

He and Rodney bundled everything back into the rental car, and Rodney drove so John could doze a bit.

As soon as they were in the motel room, John stripped out of his wetsuit completely and made a beeline for the shower. He turned on the water as hot as he could stand it and stood under it, let it beat down on him and loosen up his sore muscles. It was the good kind of sore, the kind he was proud of earning, but he was sore all the same.

The temperature dropped, and he opened his eyes, frowned. Saw that Rodney had a hand on the knob and was fiddling with the water.

“Hey,” he protested, but then Rodney was climbing into the shower with him, gloriously naked, and John knew Rodney didn’t like his water as hot as John did.

“Hey,” John said again, fondly this time, and he guided Rodney under the water, kissed him.

They washed each other, slow and leisurely, giving each other scalp massages and chasing soapsuds all over each other’s bodies, and kissing each other over and over again. They made love under the warm water, soap slicking the way, Rodney with his arms tightly around John, holding him close as they rocked together, hard cocks slipping and sliding with delicious friction until both of them came, muffling their shouts with more kisses.

They rinsed off the rest of the way, dried each other with fluffy towels (Rodney insisted on bringing his own bath towels) and then they padded out to the bedroom to dress.

Rodney sat on the bed, flipping through one of his journals. John sprawled out beside him, deliciously exhausted. He closed his eyes and snuggled close to Rodney. He wasn’t by nature a cuddly person, but given how careful he and Rodney had to be about their levels of physical contact, when he had the opportunity to indulge, he was going to take it.

“Hey.” Rodney cleared his throat. “How are you doing?”

John glanced up at him. “Me? I’m doing pretty damn good. You’re hot.” He ran a hand up Rodney’s firm thigh for emphasis.

Rodney huffed, flattered. “Yes, I know that, I mean - overall. After - the fire mission.”

John stilled. Then he shuffled further up the bed, sat up. “I’m okay. Not going to run back to Nancy.”

“Obviously not. I mean, clearly you’ve got a type - attractive, intelligent, ambitious, a little harsh in social situations - but I know you’d never cheat on me. You’re not that kind of person.” Rodney closed the journal and set it aside. He caught John’s gaze and held it. “I just - I don’t know how I’d feel if I encountered the monster that killed Kaleb and took Jeannie too.”

John would be the first to admit that one of his shortcomings in his relationship with Nancy was his inability to talk about what was really affecting him. Sometimes he really couldn’t, because what he’d done was classified, but -

But he could have talked around it, if he wanted. Guys learned how to do it.

He should have, if he wanted to make it with her.

It had taken him a lot of beers and painful talks with Lyle Holland to realize that he hadn’t wanted to make it with her after all.

He did want to make it with Rodney.

“I - I try not to think about it, honestly,” John said. “I mean, I know there was no way I could have saved him. He was too injured, and we were outnumbered, and if they’d captured both of us alive, so much could have gone wrong. I cost us a chopper, but I also got a dozen of their guys -”

“You didn’t cost anyone a chopper. That was the gremlins.”

“I know.”

“John -”

“Intellectually I know it wasn’t my fault. I did everything I could, I didn’t disobey a direct order. But he was my best friend and I couldn’t leave him.” John curled a hand around Rodney’s wrist. “I wouldn’t leave you either. I - it was a chance to say goodbye. But I still feel like I failed and I’m falling.”

Rodney frowned.

“Not all the time. Not every day. After Holland, I’d lost everything. But now I have you. You and the rest of the team.” John squeezed Rodney’s wrist gently. “I’m never going to be perky like Vala or Miko, but I really am happy. I promise. You make me happy.”

Rodney searched his gaze, hesitant.

John said, “It’s not your job to make me happy. You make me happy just by being.”

Rodney sighed. “I’m supposed to be comforting you, not the other way around -”

John silenced him with a kiss. “Losing someone like I lost Holland - and Mitch and Dex before him - is hard. Getting over it takes time, and I lost a lot of people without being given a lot of time to get over it. But now I have time, and I have you. Okay?”

“Okay,” Rodney muttered and kissed him again.

“Good. So, lunch?”

“Yes, lunch.”

John texted Kono, assured her they were on for lunch, and then he and Rodney set out to find kind Kamekona’s Shrimp Truck.

*

Kamekona’s Shrimp Truck was located on the edge of the water in a parking lot, surrounded by sturdy wooden picnic tables. John and Rodney parked and headed over to a table where Kono was sitting with two men. John guessed the man sitting beside her was her boyfriend, which would make the man opposite him her cousin.

There was a tension in the air that made John wary, but he offered up one of his patented charming Sheppard Man smiles.

“Hey, Kono, thanks for inviting us along.”

She lit up when she saw him. “Thanks for coming. You’ll love it out there on the pipeline. It’s going to be amazing. John, this is my boyfriend, Adam Noshimuri, and my cousin Chin Ho Kelly. Chin’s with me on the Five-0 Task Force. And Adam -”

“Is a businessman,” Adam cut in, shaking John’s hand.

Judging by the way Chin’s eyes narrowed, _businessman_ was a euphemism for something he didn’t approve of.

“Pleasure to meet you both. Thanks for having us along. I’m John Sheppard, and this is Rodney McKay. We’re both on leave for a couple of weeks.”

“Leave?” Chin asked.

“Air Force,” John said. “Rodney’s a civilian contractor attached to my current project.”

“Kono says you surf pretty good,” Chin said.

John levered himself down onto the bench beside Chin. “She flatters me. I’ve always been mostly a hobby surfer, not super competitive. It’s relaxing.”

Adam glanced up at Rodney, who hovered uncertainly until John patted the space beside him. “Do you surf?”

“Me? No. I leave it to John. If I’m going to risk my physical safety, I’m going to do it for science.” Rodney picked up one of the laminated menus. “What’s good that’s citrus free? I’m allergic to citrus.”

A veritable giant of a man ambled over. He must have been Kamekona himself, because his face was on the t-shirt he was wearing.

“If it isn’t my good friends from Five-0, plus some new faces. I always appreciate new business when you bring it my way. What’ll it be today?”

John ordered citrus-free shrimp scampi for himself. Rodney decided to try the butter and garlic so they could share. Kono and Adam did the same, and Chin ordered some scampi for himself. John ordered shave ice for himself and Rodney too.

“I promise,” John said, “that shave ice isn’t the same as a snow cone, and you’ll love it.”

Rodney eyed him warily but assented.

While they waited for the food, they talked. Chin had been a cop for a while before being recruited to Five-0 by Steve McGarrett, the Navy SEAL Lieutenant Commander who was the task force leader. Chin had been Steve’s father’s partner when he was a rookie, and he’d recommended Kono for the gig. Kono had been scooped up right out of the Academy, and she was the team’s computer tech guru. In addition to Steve, they had an HPD detective on the team. Danny Williams was originally from New Jersey and had come to Hawaii to be close to his daughter, who’d been brought to Hawaii by his ex-wife and her new husband.

“Danny and Steve are - special,” Chin said.

“They argue like an old married couple is what he means.” Kono laughed.

“How long have you all been working together?” John asked.

“About three years now,” Kono said. “You?”

“We’ve been posted to the same project for about six months now,” John said. “Kinda feels like years, sometimes. Just - the intensity of it all.”

Kono and Chin nodded knowingly.

Kamekona arrived with the shrimp, and conversation dwindled while they dug in. Kono explained that they’d met Kamekona because he’d started off as a CI, and now he was just kind of - the everything guy. In addition to his shrimp truck and his shave ice business, he also ran helicopter tours, and he was always trying new business ideas. Also seemed to be able to procure - anything, no matter how strange. And he seemed to know everyone.

“We have a guy like that,” John said. “His name’s Evan. He is, coincidentally, also a fantastic chef. And baker. And artist. He knows how to acquire pretty much everything, and he also knows all sorts of unusual but helpful people. I think one of the things he did before he received his medical discharge from the Air Force was logistics.”

Adam nodded knowingly. “A good logistics guy is worth his weight in gold.”

The shrimp was delicious, and Rodney grudgingly admitted at the the shave ice was better than snow cones he’d had in the past.

“Wasn’t there that song about shave ice back in the day?” John asked. “I remember hearing it on the radio when I was here in the summer. Like, every summer.”

Kono, Adam, and Chin all burst out singing together, _Shave iiiiiice! Enticing ice!_

Rodney was alarmed that anyone had ever sung about shave ice, but John pointed out that it was a cultural icon in Hawaii, so of course there was a song about it.

They finished eating and made plans to meet up at the marina where Adam kept his boat, picked a time and divvied up the gear everyone ought to bring. John and Rodney agreed to bring drinks since they were crashing the party. Chin, Kono, and Adam suggested some pretty hikes that most tourists didn’t know about, and then they parted ways.

First things first - Rodney and John bought a disposable cooler and the requested drinks, took them back to the motel.

“Now,” John said, “we have the rest of the day to do whatever we want. What do you want to do? Besides check your phone for emails from Team Carter when you think I’m not looking.”

Rodney snatched his hand away from his phone, expression rueful.

“We should do something - couple-y,” Rodney said finally.

“Like what?” John asked.

“Massages,” Rodney said. “We’re engaged in a very stressful profession, and if we really want to relax, we should - go to a spa or something. Couples massages are a thing, right?”

John thought of all the times Nancy had accused him of putting his job before her. He reached up, stroked a hand over his dog tags. Then he slipped them up over his head, pocketed them. He’d take off his watch and wristband for a massage too anyway.

“Sure. Fire up your laptop and find a spa with an opening. And _don’t_ check your work email.”

Rodney nodded. “On it.”

*

After having spent a leisurely day getting massages, walking through a museum, and going out for a fancy dinner, John was loathe to get up early, but then he remembered. Massive waves. Offshore pipeline.

So he chivvied Rodney out of bed. John squirmed back into his wetsuit, and he and Rodney packed dry clothes and towels. They loaded the car full of drinks and their cheap styrofoam cooler, stopped at a gas station for some more power bars and ice for the cooler. On the way to the marina, Rodney made sure he had his stack of journals and the appropriate highlighters and pens.

Adam’s boat was probably better described as a yacht, the kind John had grown up with, a sleek, luxurious craft that bobbed gently on the water. Kono was already on deck wearing a wetsuit herself. Adam was at the pilot wheel, Chin was helping Kono with the rigging.

“Welcome aboard,” Adam said.

John hoisted the cooler full of drinks up to him.

“Cheers.” Adam grinned and accepted it, ferried down to the cabin.

John helped Rodney up onto the boat, then hauled his surfboard up after him. He stowed it alongside three other surfboards - Kono’s he recognized; the other two were Chin and Adam’s.

Rodney found a place to settle in with his journals, somewhere he wouldn’t be too bothered by spray. John sat beside him, and they helped each other get covered up in sunscreen (Rodney’s homemade formulation).

John could pilot a boat, but he hadn’t done it in a while, so he went to chat with Adam, get the specs on the craft. Kono and Chin popped up beside him, and they talked about the pipeline, the types of waves they could be looking at. Chin was something of an amateur photographer and had a camera, was planning on trying to get footage of some of the really good rides.

Kono hadn’t been kidding. They sailed out past the spot where John and Kono had surfed the day before to where the really big waves were rolling and rolling and rolling. John itched to get out there and try to really carve. With how long the barrels were, he could probably get some good practice in for some foam climbs, some laybacks.

Adam dropped anchor, and then he and Chin ducked belowdecks to change into their wetsuits.

John squeezed Rodney’s shoulder, assured him he’d be fine, and then he and Kono grabbed their boards and headed out to catch some waves.

As a kid, John had watched surfing competitions, had envied the people who got to sail out far past the beach and catch the really big waves, but his father had considered surfing a waste of time, something only stoners and layabouts did. John had had to sneak out in the mornings, use some of the money he’d earned tutoring boys at his boarding school in math and buy a cheap used board, and charm a couple of local kids into taking pity on him, the ignorant _haole._ That he’d learned to surf in rebellion against his father had endeared him to the local surfer kids, and they’d taught him willingly.

“Just so you know,” John said to Kono, while they sat bobbing on their boards and feeling the waves roll in, “this is kind of a dream come true.”

She grinned at him. “Glad I can help.” And then she paddled into the next wave.

John watched her go and felt his pulse begin to race. He felt the next wave well beneath him, and he started to paddle.

Surfing wasn’t really like flying. Surfing was like _surfing,_ and it felt awesome.

John whooped, crouched down low, and rode the barrel as long as he could. Managed a backdoor exit before the wave crashed on him, and he arced up for a foam climb. He managed a layback turn on the way down, and then he tumbled off his board. Broke the surface to where Kono was bobbing, waiting. Together they paddled back up over the top to catch another wave.

While Kono was going in for her next ride, John sat up on his board, waved at Rodney.

Sure enough, Chin and Adam had a camera set on a tripod on the deck.

John would never try jumps and flips like Kono did, was nowhere near that skill level, but was definitely getting the hang of really carving up a screamer. He paddled down into the next wave and was zooming across the water once more.

Eventually Adam came out and joined them, and then Chin did, leaving Rodney to fiddle with the camera.

Both men were much better surfers than John, but none of them held a candle to Kono, who made it look effortless.

After a while Chin and Adam retreated back to the boat, and it was just Kono and John once more.

She went in for a wave, seemed like she was forever in the barrel. Then she emerged from the foam, Boticelli’s Venus gone Hawaiian, and she climbed the foam, climbed it again, managed a sleek layback and finally a jump.

She landed in the water.

She didn’t surface.

She didn’t surface.

Her board bobbed on the water.

She didn’t surface.

John signaled to Chin and Adam, and then he dove. Sliced downward through the water, searching even though the salt of it burned his eyes.

Kono was just beyond his reach, kicking and struggling in the water. Her foot was caught on something. John called out in a burst of bubbles, and he reached for her. She strained to reach him, but it was no use. He unstrapped his board leash and dove further, caught her hand, tugged.

Still no use.

He swam further down, tried to see why her foot was caught, but his lungs were burning, he was running out of air.

He broke the surface.

Chin and Adam were streaking through the water toward him.

Rodney was on the radio.

John sucked in a deep gulp of air and dove once more. He had to get to her, had to save her, had to -

Kono was free. Kono was swimming toward him. Kono was naked from the waist up, hair flowing around her face.

Kono had a _fish tail_ from the waist down.

Not like the lame green tail the Little Mermaid had had in the Disney cartoon, but like from an actual fish, golden-orange with blue stripes and complicated fins and sort of smaller fins accenting her hips and she was a _mermaid._

John shot for the surface, gasping for air. Had he been hallucinating? It was possible. Sure, his job had introduced him to fairies, demons, vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters, golems, and aliens, but surely mermaids were just a myth, right?

“Where is she?” Adam demanded.

Kono broke the surface of the water. Her shoulders were bare. Adam and Chin wore matching pale, grim expressions.

“What happened?” Adam asked, swimming toward her.

“I - my foot got caught on - something. It’s fine.”

“You were down there forever,” Chin said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

Kono nodded. She cleared her throat and said, “John saw.”

Adam and Chin burst out at the same time with, “You can’t tell _anyone.”_ Then they looked at each other.

“You _know?”_ Chin asked. He cast Kono an accusing look.

Kono avoided his gaze. “I’ll get our boards, meet you back at the boat.” And she vanished under the water. There was no telltale mermaid tail flip.

John and the others headed back to the boat, heaved themselves onto the deck.

“Where’s Kono?” Rodney asked. “Is she all right?”

“She’s fine,” Chin said. He cast Adam a dark look, then ducked belowdecks, emerged with a massive towel.

Kono heaved first John’s, then her surfboard up onto the deck. When she climbed out of the water, she was completely naked but fully human. Rodney clapped a hand over John’s eyes right before Kono thanked her cousin for the towel.

“Some kind of wardrobe malfunction out there?” Rodney demanded.

John tugged his hand aside. “There’s a good explanation for it.”

“You can’t tell him,” Adam said sharply.

Rodney frowned. “Tell me what?”

“Rodney and I know how to keep a secret,” John said.

Chin shook his head. “No, not about something like this. If anyone were to ever find out -”

“I’m not fully human myself,” John said.

Rodney dug an elbow into his ribs. “John, no!”

Kono blinked. Chin and Adam blinked.

“You have to promise not to tell anyone,” John said.

Rodney frowned. “Wait, are you saying -?” He looked Kono up down where she shivered under the towel. “Mermaids are _real?”_

“A secret for a secret,” John said to Kono, “although I suppose technically you know two of mine.”

 _“Two?”_ Rodney echoed. “What other classified secrets have you been telling your super-hot surfing instructor?”

“Not classified,” John said, reaching out and tangling his fingers with Rodney’s meaningfully.

“Oh,” Rodney said in a small voice. He squeezed John’s hand. Then he turned to Kono. “So, mermaid?”

She nodded. “What about you?”

John huffed. “I’ve never actually said it aloud, but - fairy.”

Chin’s eyebrows shot toward his hairline. “Really?”

“Yes, I realize how it sounds, given me and Rodney, but - my mother. Was not at all human.”

“It’s on my mom’s side too,” Kono said. “That’s why I have it and Chin doesn’t. When I’m in human form, I’m just human, but in Sea People form, I can breathe underwater, so when I couldn’t get my ankle loose - well, my tail came loose, and also I could breathe again.”

“What was it?” Adam asked, curling a protective hand around her shoulder.

She shrugged. “I don’t know.” She smiled tentatively up at John. “Can you do any magic?”

“Nothing big,” he said. “And I don’t have wings. I can’t fly. But I can see magic. And -” He gestured to his ears uncomfortably. “Also - this.” He cast a glamour, one that rendered his face kind of - nondescript. So someone searching for him would look right past him.

“Hey,” Rodney protested. “You’ve never shown me that before.”

“That’s kinda cool,” Kono said. “Would be handy, for undercover work.”

John dismissed the glamour with a thought. “I can’t maintain it for very long, but it’s saved my skin in combat a few times. I’m only half, so. My brother has an entirely different set of skills - he always, always knows when someone is lying. Except for me.”

“Now _that_ would be a great skill to have, as a cop,” Chin said.

“Well, but he can’t always tell _why_ someone is lying. If someone’s trying to hide a surprise birthday party from him, it gets tough.” John smiled.

“Let me go get some clothes on, and we can talk some more.” Kono and Adam ducked belowdecks.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Rodney asked in a low voice.

“I can tell her what I am without telling her what we do,” John said.

“It’s always been my job to look after her,” Chin said. “Uncle made me promise to never let anyone find out.”

“We’re probably the best people outside your family who could have found out,” John said.

Chin reached into the cooler, opened a bottle of beer, took a long pull. “You know, even though I grew up knowing about Kono and Auntie, I never that other things might be real, too.”

“Neither did I,” John said. “For a second there, when I saw her tail, I thought I was hallucinating.”

“I was always jealous, that she could swim forever and ever.” Chin gazed out into the distance, at the rolling waves.

Kono and Adam emerged from below.

“Your tail is beautiful, by the way,” John said.

Kono smiled. “Thanks. I inherited my colors from my grandmother.”

Rodney lit up. “Your grandmother? Was she a full-blooded mermaid?”

Chin handed Kono a beer.

“Forgive him,” John said. “He’s a curious scientist. I had to endure a lot of strangeness from him once he found out what I am.”

“It’s fine,” Kono said, taking a long drink. “Just - odd. Besides Mom and Dad and Chin, I was never allowed to talk about it. I told Adam once I knew we were serious, but - I never told any of my other boyfriends.”

Chin turned to Adam, surprise and something like respect in his eyes.

Rodney leaned in, gaze intense. “So, what’s true and not true? Does it hurt when you walk?”

“No. And I’m not an especially good singer, either.”

“No she is _not,”_ Chin said firmly, and Adam chuckled, nodding knowingly.

“Obviously we’re not immortal,” Kono said. “I don’t think we’re any stronger or faster than regular humans, although obviously when I’m in Sea form in the water I’m much more durable, can breathe underwater.”

“Do you have any magic besides transformation?” Rodney asked. “In the original myth the Sea Witch wasn’t an octopus but an old mermaid herself.”

“No,” Kono said. “At least, I never saw my mom do any magic, and she never told me about any. One thing, though.”

“Yes?” Rodney was obviously itching to take notes, but he’d remember everything in crystal-clear detail later because it was important to him.

“In the original myth, when the mermaid died, her body turned to seafoam when she hit the waves.” Kono took another drink. “When my blood hits the water, it also turns into seafoam.”

Adam and Chin stared at her.

Kono rolled her eyes. “I’m not going to cut myself for your entertainment. I don’t have any super-healing.”

“That’s - wow,” John said. “Thank you, for telling us.”

Kono reached out and squeezed his hand. “I’m glad I can. It’s kind of nice, knowing my People aren’t alone in the world.”

“Some days,” John said, “it really is nice knowing that.”

Rodney said, “Can I get a sample of your blood?”

John elbowed him. “And then there’s moments like this.”

“What? You gave me samples of your blood.” Rodney rubbed his ribs, affected a wounded pout.

“Yes, but I am your teammate and also I was harboring a pretty embarrassing crush on you, so I was feeling much more forgiving of your social gaffes,” John said.

But Kono said, “Sure, for science. You’ll have to tell me if you learn anything special.”

“Of course,” Rodney said. Then he fretted. “I don’t have any syringes. Evan always has those.”

“I’m sure we can work something out,” John said soothingly.

Adam cracked open a beer, sat down beside Kono. “What else do you think is real out there? Vampires, werewolves, witches?”

“I bet,” John said, “it’s like Halloween out there.”

Kono raised her bottle of beer high. “To Halloween.”

The others clinked bottles with her.

“Cheers!”

**Author's Note:**

> Written for Mermaid day of the Shoobie Monster fest and the prompt: "Hawaii 5-0, Kono Kalakaua, She can transform into a mermaid in the ocean."


End file.
